Remember Kyle Schwarber’s slow start in the leadoff spot last year? Well, despite homering on the first pitch of the season, Ian Happ is off to a worse start and the struggles extended to the field Monday against the Cincinnati Reds.
Happ actually began the game nicely, drawing a leadoff walk against Reds pitcher Tyler Mahle. Yet, it was downhill after that for Happ at the plate and in center field too. The Cubs switch-hitter finished the game with a single in the eighth inning, snapping a 0-for-14 streak, in which he struck out 10 times.
Happ now tied with Sano for most K's (10) in baseball.
— Jesse Rogers (@ESPNChiCubs) April 2, 2018
Yes, I’ll point out that the two strikeouts were on pretty close pitches on the inside part of the plate, but still Happ has to do a better job of fighting those pitches off with two strikes.
Overall, that’s 10 strikeouts for Happ through his first 18 plate appearances in 2018, drawing two walks in his first five games. However, the more concerning part was Happ’s performance on defense.
It’s something everyone respects about Jason Heyward. Yeah, he might be doing nothing at the plate, but you’ll never see him take his offensive frustration to the field. During Monday’s game, however, Happ lost focus not once but twice in the outfield, costing the Cubs the first time around.
It was the top of the fourth inning, when Eugenio Suarez hit a line drive to center field off Tyler Chatwood. Happ misplayed the ball, having it go over his head on a bounce off the wall. That gave Suarez plenty of time needed to safely reach third base with no outs. The Reds took advantage of that extra base, as Adam Duvall drove in Suarez with a ground ball in the next at-bat.
Ultimately the second mistake didn’t cost the Cubs, but once again Happ made a poor play in center. Tucker Barnhart was credited with a double, but that was thanks to a misread by Happ. The Reds had runners at second and third with one out in the sixth, but luckily Chatwood escaped without further damage following the mishap.
It’s only one bad game (defensively) and two terrible mistakes, but hopefully this doesn’t become a trend early in the year for Happ. Obviously everyone wants the struggles to be kept at a minimum at the plate, but even if they are present Happ can’t take that negativity with him to the field.
Yes, it’s only five games, but the bad defense and worse plate appearances may lead Cubs manager Joe Maddon to shy away from Happ in favor of Ben Zobrist, who is off to a crisp start. That’s at least if Happ continues the ugly play overall.
And we’ve seen Happ improve as a center fielder, so we know the talent is there.
Ian Happ diving catch. #Cubs pic.twitter.com/OsuZpqbaiO
— Aldo Soto (@AldoSoto21) March 31, 2018
Back to the offensive issues, it’s a similar problem that Schwarber had in the first half of 2017. Happ can strikeout, but he has to produce power and his fair share of walks and he certainly can’t have the mental lapses shown during Monday’s loss, or the playing time will decrease.
Just another reminder that those spring training numbers can be oh so deceiving.
